Perseverance, Purpose, and Prayer

The weather has been amazing this year,
so I have been hiking on and off since the New Year.
What's especially great
is that as of this morning,
I have hiked 10 days
in a row for the past two weeks!


Even on the days when my hubby and/or girlfriend is not with me,
I have still made the effort to hike our mountain trail alone.
I have to puff on my inhaler when I choose the difficult trail,
and my legs still burn,
but I do it happily.
Yay me!
After all, perseverance, pays off!

2 Chronicles 15:7 But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.

I'm enjoying the outdoors
and the fact that I am doing something
new is exciting.

Speaking of new,
I have been learning so many new things
about the Bible over the past few years and about it's history,
and I am really loving it!
As I dive deeper into the Bible
and work on my relationship with God,
I grow to appreciate the Word a little more. 

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

With Lent upon us,
I have done more than usual this year to prepare.
I have always known about the Church's view on fasting
and sacrifice,
but it never really had a personal meaning to me.
While I have given things up in the past,
I had done it, because it was a tradition,
and so (I wince as I say) I had never followed through.

Now that I truly appreciate
all of the gifts that I have been given,
and the sacrifices that have been made for me,
Lent has a deeper meaning!
I am very thankful, a girlfriend
casually mentioned Lent several weeks ago.
I believe that God used her to work on me!
After her reminder,
the Lord's sacrifice really stayed on my mind.

This year, is the first year that I am choosing
to abstain from something difficult
as my own personal sacrifice,
and am planning to pray more frequently and purposefully,
because of my gratitude. 

Mark 1:12-15
And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him. Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the Good News of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the Good News."


I have typed up a prayer sheet for my family
so that we can all pray for the same people on the same day.
I truly believe in the power of prayer
and I think if everyone in our family
takes the time to pray for each individual
several times through out the day,
on their prayer day
great things can and will happen!

James 1:6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

Matthew 21:22 If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.

Today, is the first day of Lent 
and the first person on our prayer sheet is my Dad.
I have already said several prayers for him today,
since waking up.
Not that he isn't regularly in my thoughts,
but by the time I lay my head down on my pillow tonight,
I will have prayed dozens of prayers
for him ~ specifically.
It feels great to know that I will consciously pray
for my Dad -all day- today,
my Mom all day tomorrow
and so on. 

James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

Well, 

it is time

to go and create another

purpose-filled day.

Until next time... <3

Keeping Jesus in My Corner

The other night my sleep was interrupted

by some rustling noises coming from the corner of my bedroom.

My daughter was asleep on the floor,

so I jumped up and made her crawl into our bed.

 

 

A mouse!

Could it be a mouse?!

For a moment,

I thought it was a possibility!

Then I remembered the two little robo hamsters

we bought for our girls just days before.

 

 

I dragged myself half asleep to Jocelyn's room

to check on them

and sure enough one of the little critters escaped from the cage.

First thing that morning, 

Jocelyn and I caught the little hamster

-who hadn't moved all night-

and put her back into her cage.

 

 

This is the 3rd time one of Jocelyn's hamsters has woken me up

in the middle of the night.

Why do they always end up in my corner in the middle of the night? I mumbled.

The laundry room and two other bedrooms in the house had their doors wide open,

but for some reason the hamsters always end up in the same place.

My corner of the house.

It was so thankful to have caught her,

because the salesgirl at Petco made it sound as though robo hamsters

are not to be held. She said their instinct is to escape and

when they get loose it's almost impossible to find them.

We got lucky!

Later, as we were eating breakfast

my daughter was reading me a story from her school book.

I had her put it down to finish her cereal,

and said we would continue reading it later.

She checked the page number,

"316." She said.

"316?" I repeated. "That reminds me of John 3:16."

I looked up the verse and read it to her.

"I wonder if that verse popped into my mind for a reason?"

"No, Mom." She said matter-of-factly, "it's just a page I stopped on."

"Hmmm. You said 316 and then this verse popped into my head.

I think there was a reason."

"Mom, it just happened, there was no reason."

"Oh, if you ask me, there is always a reason.

 

Bible verses make their way into my head,

because I care about them.

Yep, Jesus is the reason.

I keep Jesus in my corner, and He keeps me in His.


That has to be why those furry little creatures keep ending up in my corner.


My corner is a safe place to be! ;)

Project 31 ~ What Jesus has taught me...

Day 10: What has Jesus taught you as a wife, mom or friend?

Jesus has taught me many things.

Christ embodies love, sacrifice, kindness, humility, surrender, compassion and so many inspiring traits, but the one thing that Jesus has taught me more than any other is forgiveness.

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God also in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)

Forgiveness is freedom!

We forgive people for their actions. We forgive life for throwing curveballs our way. We forgive ourselves for making mistakes. We forgive God when we have moments that make us question our circumstances.

Choosing to forgive has made me a better wife. It makes my marriage fun and carefree. It means that even when we disagree, we can quickly get over it.

I love my husband too much to remain angry.

Choosing to forgive has also made me a better mom. Even though I am no longer with my ex husband, my daughter sees that we get along. As she matures, she will know that we loved her enough to forgive each other for the past. Too many children suffer because of divorce. The parents choose to stay angry, the kids know all of the details of the divorce, they are thrown in the middle of arguments and the children end up having issues of their own.

I love my daughter too much to remain angry.

Choosing to forgive has also made me a better person. Life gets complicated. I have made many mistakes in this life, but I forgive myself. I have given myself a chance to start over and I encourage others to do the same.

I love myself too much to remain angry.  

Do not choose to be bitter, choose to be better.

We become bitter because we hold onto our hurts, but everyone has hurts. 

Choose Forgiveness.

Forgiveness makes us stronger. There is a misconception that forgiveness makes us weak. That when we forgive we are giving in to another person that tried to hurt us or a hardship that tried to bring us down. People believe that if we stay angry we are tough, but anger does not make us tough. Anger makes us unhappy and unhappiness makes us weak, and let us be honest, angry people are no fun to be around.

I have not seen an episode of Doctor Phil in forever, but yesterday, the show looked intense and so I kept it on. At the end of the show, Dr. Phil said these words,

"You don't forgive the people that deserve it. You forgive the people that YOU deserve to be free of. You deserve to forgive them. It does not mean that what they did was okay or that he/she deserves your forgiveness, it means that you refuse to invest your life and energy on them! Tell yourself this situation needs a hero and it's going to be me."

It was such a powerful ending.

He is telling us to set ourselves free. Forgive, not for them. Forgive for us.

The easy thing to do, the weak thing to do, is to stay angry. Anger, hate, bitterness...those are easy emotions. Forgiving and loving those who have sinned against us is hard work, but it is possible.

To do this we have to remove our pride, but who needs pride anyway?

We don't need to be proud, we need to be humble, we need to be grateful.

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. (Proverbs 11:2)

We need to realize that everything we have and everything that we accomplish is because of God.

Every good and perfect gift is from above. (James 1:17)

Christ loves us and He wants us to let go of our hurts.

He wants us to forgive.

He will give us the strength to do so.

Jesus helped me to let go of my hurts and to forgive.

If you have not done so already, I challenge you to let go of yours!

Do not focus on all of the ways that she/he hurt you.

Do not hold on to the fact that not all of your prayers have been answered.

Don't hold on to all of the illnesses that have affected your family.

Don't focus on the losses you have suffered.

Just let go and let God.

It really is empowering...

Allow yourself to forgive.

Allow yourself to let go.

Allow yourself to be free.

Allow Christ to work miracles in your life.

A Valentine Craft, Project 31 & Linky Parties

Happy Monday!
I decided to join a few linky parties today, but first..... 

I am super excited about my most recent (and might I add very inexpensive) craft project!

I ran to Dollar Store on Saturday and picked up 6 floral bouquets, 1 roll of tulle and a wreath.

I have been wanting to make my own wreath for months and I figured Valentine's Day would be the perfect opportunity to do so, since I have never bought one specifically for this holiday.

The wreaths that I have purchased in the past have cost me anywhere from $20-$40, but my homemade wreath cost me much less.

It only cost $8 to make! Awesome!!
Since, I already had the glue sticks, hearts and ribbon,
I saved anywhere from $10 to $30 and not to mention I enjoy this stuff!

Now, moving on to Project 31!



The topic for today is to post a picture of myself in my favorite outfit. I don't have very many pics of me dressed up these days since I am usually the one with the camera, and to be honest, most days I am in t-shirts and jogging pants.

However, I did find a recent picture of me at my nieces birthday party. As I was helping my sister blow up balloons, I took a minute to wave to my husband who happened to be taking a picture.
I'm wearing a LBD from Macy's. I love the layers of fabric used to make it. It has lace, silk and cotton. Being that I am a girly-girl, I love to dress up and I wear dresses any chance I get!

I was also wearing a pair of black wedged boots that I got for my birthday last month.

They are my favorite pair of shoes at the moment. I love boots, but I have a hard time finding a comfy pair that gives me some height. (Notice, even with the heel, I am nearly the size of the kiddos ;o) 

Okay, I have to admit, I was a bit depressed last night, even close to tears! I miss my family! However, today I am extra excited, because today my little Joc comes home and my hubby comes back tomorrow! I can't wait. This house has been wayyyy too quiet for the last few days and well, I love them!

On to the linky parties...

Ephesians 4:32 (NKJV) And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you.

1. Where is your cell phone? desk
2. Your most significant other? Florida
3. Your hair? Brown
 4.Your mother? kind
5. Your father? smart
6. Your favorite? chocolate
7. Your dream last night? none
8. Your favorite drink? kool-aid
9. Your dream/goal? author
10. What room you are in? den
11. Your hobby? writing
12. Your fear? evil
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? here
14. Where were you last night? bed
15. Something that you aren't? tall
16. Muffins? blueberry
17. Wish list item? bedding
18. Where you grew up? AZ
19. Last thing you did? text
20. What are you wearing? comfy
21. Your TV? off
22. Your pets? small
23. Friends? beautiful
24. Your life? peaceful
25. Your mood? mixed
26. Missing someone? yes
27. One place that I go to over and over? Fry's
28. Something you want: excercise
29. Your favorite store? many
30. Your favorite color? pink

 

After the Rain, The Rainbow

When I was 16, I did not have the desire to drive. My parents had to push me. I was going to a high school that was 20 minutes away for their art program and my mom had five other kids to get ready for school and a family business to tend to. If I wanted to go to this school, I needed to learn how to drive; it was as simple as that. My Grandma knew that I was scared and she offered to practice with me. One weekend we took off on a little road trip to Yarnell, Arizona. I was a small, nervous driver behind the wheel of her big gold Cadillac. Yarnell was a little town a few hours away, but that was Grandma’s destination of choice, because it had a Shrine. When we got there, we walked through a memorial that displayed the last days of Jesus Christ’s life. Then we had lunch and headed home.

On our way back, just as I was curving around the mountainside, it started to rain. My grandma was getting nervous and she asked me to pull over at the next exit. Before I was able to, the most beautiful thing happened. The end of the rainbow had miraculously hit the spot that we were traveling on. Suddenly, we were floating on a pathway of colors and for a moment, it seemed as though time stood still. We were able to enjoy the beauty before us. It was as if the landscape had been painted using only several pastel colors and then sprinkled with glitter. The rain had turned into what looked like small crystals dropping from the sky. It was amazing and we laughed, gasped and looked on in disbelief. I know that there are scientific explanations for rainbows, but I have never once believed that this experience had anything to do with science. In our hearts, we felt like God had sent us a miracle.

Like most people, I have experienced the trials of family illnesses, death, financial struggles, marital issues, and divorce. I was hurt and frightened many times, and uncertain if I had the strength to pull through. Would I ever stop crying? Would the pain in my chest go away? Would I ever feel like myself? The answers were always yes. Life always had a way of working out. I have learned that while the storms of life can be painful, the pain eventually ends. Even so, there are still times when I need to be reminded that life is good. When I find myself afraid to deal with the issues that are ahead of me, I simply remind myself to stop and look around. The sunrise, or the transformation of a butterfly are all reminders that some things in life are constant. Constant like God’s unfailing love, and the like the rainbow appearing after the rain.